Etymograph

English

knighthead

From knight + head; sometimes decorated with a carving of a man's head.

A compound of knight + head

Proto-West Germanic *kneht ‘servant, knight’

Old English cniht ‘boy’

Middle English knight

English knight

Proto-Indo-European *kap- ‘head’

…

Proto-Germanic *haubudą ‘head’

Proto-West Germanic *haubud

Old English hēafod ‘head’

Middle English heed ‘head’

English head

Today it means

noun A mitred backing timber which extends the after line of the rabbet in the stem to give extra support to the ends of the planks and the bowsprit.

Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.

Etymograph / knighthead